This section is intended to provide a background or context to the invention that is recited in the claims. The description herein may include concepts that could be pursued, but are not necessarily ones that have been previously conceived, implemented or described. Therefore, unless otherwise indicated herein, what is described in this section is not prior art to the description and claims in this application and is not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.
Wi-Fi is a Trademark of the Wi-Fi Alliance and is associated with various products that belong to a class of wireless local area network (WLAN) devices based on the IEEE 802.11 standards. The term Wi-Fi is often found to be used as a synonym for IEEE 802.11 technology.
Public Wi-Fi hotspot networks are widely deployed today in many environments such as hotels, restaurants, coffee shops, airports, malls and public/private offices. Internet access through these hotspot networks requires a user to either have a subscription with the operator of that hotspot network or some type of roaming arrangement.
Currently there is an industry forum effort ongoing referred to as Hotspot 2.0 which aims to simplify the process of accessing public Wi-Fi hotspot networks.
There are currently two main types of Wi-Fi network public deployments:                open networks, where the device can freely associate to the network, but does not obtain Internet access until it launches a browser and provides credentials; and        RSN enabled networks, which require credentials to associate. Robust Security Network (RSN) is an element of IEEE 802.11i authentication and encryption algorithms to be used for communications between wireless access points (WAPs) and wireless clients.        
The open public Wi-Fi hotspot networks that are currently deployed are generally operated by ISPs (Internet Service Providers), cellular operators, or by a business establishment itself. These networks typically require a paid subscription or they can be offered as part of a cellular data plan or purchase of access for a specific duration of time. Such Wi-Fi hotspot networks typically use a technology referred to as captive portals through which the users can provide their credentials to access the network or to purchase access. The captive portal-based approach requires the user to launch a web browser which is then redirected to a portal that is managed by the operator of the hotspot network. This portal provides information about the various data plans that can be purchased. If the user has a subscription with the operator, the portal provides a way for the user to enter assigned credentials and then obtain Internet access. The user device does not have connectivity to the Internet (beyond the captive portal) until authentication is performed. The Wi-Fi hotspot allows the user device to associate with the WiFi access point (AP) and assigns the device an IP address. However the connectivity to the Internet beyond the captive portal is blocked until the user has authenticated using credentials that are assigned as part of a subscription, or the user buys access for a period of time. This approach is currently widely deployed and operates well given the types of applications and services used.
In RSN-enabled hotspot networks the captive portal redirect approach is not possible to be used, since RSN enabled networks require the device to authenticate using 802.1x, and the authentication is performed prior to the device being assigned an IP address. Hence there is no way for the device to be redirected to a portal page. If the device does not have the necessary credentials and ability to authenticate using the 802.1x protocol, then the device is unable to use the Wi-Fi hotspot network. 802.1x is a security protocol specified by IEEE for Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP) authentication (802.1X™, IEEE Standard for Local and metropolitan networks, Port-Based Network Access Control, 13 Dec. 2004, incorporated by reference herein).
In general, using 802.1x for authenticating with an RSN enabled Wi-Fi hotspot network provides better user experience since the user does not have to open a browser and provide credentials. There is no manual intervention required to obtain Internet connectivity through such a hotspot network.
The 802.1x-based approach works well when the device/user has the credentials that are valid on a Wi-Fi network. However, given the large number of Wi-Fi hotspot operators that operate such networks, the user may not have credentials when roaming or at a given location. It should be possible, even in RSN enabled networks which utilize 802.1x based authentication mechanisms, to provide the user with an opportunity to purchase a subscription. Wi-Fi hotspot network operators can generate revenue by ensuring that they provide service to not only users who have subscriptions but to anyone else who may want to use the network. The hotspot operator can thus have a financial interest in offering the ability to purchase a subscription to access the network.
The Wi-Fi Alliance Hotspot 2.0 working group is currently focused on developing solutions which enable seamless access to HS2.0 Wi-Fi networks by simplifying the access authentication procedures. Providing on-line sign-up capabilities to RSN networks is one topic of discussion.